San Jose – When Bay FC debuted in San Jose last year, the club and head coach Albertin Montoya were focused on evaluating their roster and finding their footing. This year, Montoya and the team are proving their capabilities.
Bay FC is addressing key uncertainties from the offseason, particularly in attack and goalkeeping, highlighted in their 2-0 home-opening win over Racing Louisville on Saturday night.
“We’ve come together,” Montoya said in his post-match presser. “We understand each other really well on the field and have great chemistry. I’m excited for the group.”
San Jose native Joelle Anderson opened the scoring for Bay FC in the 12th minute, capitalizing on a deflected set piece that landed near the top of the 18-yard box. Anderson stepped up and fired a shot into the back of the net.
Bay FC doubled their lead just before halftime with a highlight-reel goal from Morgan Hill native and former California Golden Bear Karlie Lema. After collecting a clearance off a Louisville cross, Lema sprinted end-to-end before unleashing a 20-yard strike that tucked just under the crossbar and into the upper-left corner.
“My teammates were like ‘Just take your shot,’” said Lema on the goal. “So I listened to them and shot it and it went in.”
“She scores goals like this all the time (in training),” Montoya added on Lema’s goal. “But then she also skies it about 25 yards. I was just in awe, applauding and I’m glad I didn’t say anything and she didn’t hear it.”
The team’s confidence in attack carried over to the defensive end, particularly with Jordan Silkowitz anchoring the goal. Silkowitz has allowed just one goal in her first two starts this season, recording a clean sheet in Saturday night’s home victory.
“She’s done much more than hold her own,” Montoya said. “We brought her in last year because we saw so much potential in her and you’re starting to see it. I’m comfortable and I’m confident when she’s on the field and there’s a lot to be said for that with the goalkeeper, but she’s earned it in the way she’s trained and the way she carries herself.”
The confidence in the attacking front and the defensive backfield has allowed Montoya to do something a little bit different this year, something which should help the team continue to grow as the season goes on – different formations and tactics every week.
“We’re all much more familiar with each other,” explained Montoya. “Last year we played in a 4-3-3 (four defenders, three midfielders, and three attackers). We understand a 4-3-3. We just changed it this week, but we already did that last week. So, what we’ve brought in now, it’s just that you’re fine-tuning. The players have come in and understand their assignments much easier, so it’s just an evolution of us playing as a team and time.”
Bay FC lined up in a 3-5-2 formation for last week’s season-opening 1-1 draw against the Utah Royals. Head coach Albertin Montoya emphasized that he will adjust his tactics based on each week’s opponent.
“The tactics now, much more so than last year, it’s looking at our opposition,” he explained.
“It’s looking at our opposition like ‘how are we going to be able to defend them? How are we going to exploit them in the attack? We’re really starting to understand each other more and more, so now it’s continued. Everyone here has their back, and that goes a long way and we’ve got to continue doing it.”
The players are fully aligned with Montoya’s tactical vision for the season, as demonstrated by both goals from Anderson and Lema. While playing in familiar positions, both had different roles on the night compared to a week ago.
“Because of the personnel that we have on this team, it helps us adapt each week to what we’re going to do,” said Anderson. “We have the personnel on our team where we’re able to work through it and figure out solutions because of the people that we have.”
“We just have such a supporting coaching staff too,” Lema added. “I think just going into each week, we’re ready for whatever formation we need to play.”
Bay FC (1-0-1, 4 points) will travel to D.C. next Saturday to face the Washington Spirit in a rematch of last year’s NWSL playoff opener, which also marked Bay FC’s first-ever playoff game in club history.
Photo by Bay FC/X
